Decoding the role of graffiti and street art as a safety tool in public spaces of Bengaluru, India

Abstract

Art is getting infused in our everyday spaces and demonstrated itself as social commentary to various narratives and diverse experiences. Street art and graffiti is considered synonymous to vandalism or crime in public opinion earlier but recently commissioned as well as uncommission urban art is considered as a radical and alternative way to create safer urban spaces and contributing to urban inheritance. A similar spirit is reverberated in the streets of Bengaluru which is transforming the city with the provision of safer access to the plurality of the city. This paper investigates the role and works of Street art.It employs qualitative research methods including detailed surveys, depth interviews and visual recordings. It explores embodied research methods to generate tools to evaluate safer urban spaces .The study aims at finding the contribution of street art and graffiti as a permanent discourse in creating safer urban spaces and tries to understand its role in urban inheritance.